Holidays on parade Portsmouth celebrates season in style

PORTSMOUTH — Market Square was filled with holiday merriment and warmth, in spite of freezing temperatures, as hundreds lined the streets for the annual December parade.

A Saturday evening Christmas tree lighting sparked the celebration around 5:30 p.m., just before dozens of floats and marching bands passed through the Port City.

Tom Kozikowski acted as master of ceremonies for the evening, introducing interesting factoids about each float and group as they approached the center of the city. A wide array of community organizations were in full stride as the Portsmouth Police Department’s K9 units and cadets marched through, along with the local honor guard. A COAST trolley rolled through town as Kozikowski thanked the non-profit organization for its service to the Seacoast area.

The Portsmouth Fire Department closed the parade with the one and only Santa Claus waving off the back of a fire truck.

Dozens of organizations and community groups strutted their stuff in the parade, including high school marching bands and color guards from Dover, Somersworth, Rochester, and Sanford, Maine, as well as the grade 4 through grade 8 group with Greenland Central School.

Durham resident Charlotte Dubravsky, 5, looked on in wonder. Following the festivities, she said Santa was the best part.

“My favorite part of the parade were the marching bands,” chimed her 4-year-old younger sister Loreali.

Their parents Althea and Jared said they have attended the parade every year for the last five years.

“It’s just so Christmas-y in Portsmouth,” Althea said, with a smile.

Jermaine Gardner attended the parade with his 14-month-old son Jermaine, Jr. Gardner recently moved to the area from Louisiana and said the event reminded him of his home French Quarters Festival in New Orleans.

“It’s just like this, except we don’t have the snow,” he said

His friend, Portsmouth native Eric Perkins, said he has never missed the celebration.

“I just like the holiday season,” he said. “This really puts you in a good mood.”

Float winners for the evenings were Custom Pools, with the Mayor’s Award, who had a Grinch Who Stole Christmas themed vehicle, with Who-Ville characters from the Dr. Seuss story throwing water around in a heated, mobile hot tub. The Best Non-Profit Award went to the New Hampshire Association for the Blind; Best Community went Portsmouth High School’s “Eco Club” and Best Commercial Entry went to National Wrecker Services.

Local shop owner Robert Wyrick, of Warner’s Card and Gift Shop, said the parade has many benefits for the community as well as the local economy.

“It brings so many people to town,” he said, noting the shop has been in operation with his family since 1984.

The evening was a gleaming success for those involved, with food pantry donations going to the Seacoast Food Pantry, the Salvation Army and Operation Blessing. Local Portsmouth students volunteered their time walking through the parade with shopping baskets used to collect donations from the crowd.

A filming of the parade will be aired on Channel 22 at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 8.